I got this idea from Erin Stead (Caldecott Award winning illustrator for A Sick Day for Amos McGee), and I believe she used this technique to create the illustrations for the book Bear Has a Story to Tell.
1. Start with a small glass or plastic container (glass works best because plastic tends to stain). I get ALL mine from secondhand stores like Goodwill and Salvation Army, and rummage sales or flea markets-I seriously find them every time! Drop whatever color, or colors, of pastel you like into the container. I love making my own colors, and its very easy to do that with soft pastel.
2. Add small amounts of warm water (you can always add more but its hard to take away)…
3. …until it starts to dissolve and look like this.
4. When you can see no sediment left on the bottom of the container, then its ready to use!
You can use this even after it dries out just by adding water. I love the richness in color and the texture I get by painting with soft pastels, and its a super fun and easy way to try something new with an old favorite! Try it out and let me know how it goes! 😀
me + art = :) 
Reblogged this on Laurie J. Edwards ~ Author, Artist, Dreamer… and commented:
I was lucky enough to attend a talk by Erin Stead at the National Book Festival, and I was intrigued when she mentioned painting with pastels dissolved in water. At the time she was working on her second book, Bear Has a Story to Tell, written by her husband, Philip Stead. See some of the illustrations from that book here: http://us.macmillan.com/bearhasastorytotell/ErinStead.
Here are some illustrated instructions for this technique. Enjoy!
Cool, Laurie, thanks for the comment 🙂 I love Erin’s illustrations, they’re so inspiring.